AUGUSTA – Republican candidates for the Maine House of Representatives, in a biennial rite of autumn, gathered at the State House on Thursday to assert that it is time to change the balance of power in the 151-member House chamber.

Current leaders of the minority GOP caucus cast the economy as this fall’s top issue.

“The state government’s role is simple,” said the outgoing House Republican leader, David Bowles of Sanford, in a prepared statement. “We are to provide an atmosphere in which our economy can grow and prosper. We do this by keeping state policies of taxation and regulation competitive with other states, particularly our nearest neighbors.”

Part rally, although there was no real audience, and part photo op, although media attendance was slight, the event on the seldom-used front steps of the Capitol would not qualify as a public relations coup.

But Republicans who have chafed at Democratic control of the House for more than three decades are familiar with being overlooked. That prolonged experience, Bowles made clear, is a strong motivator for them, again.

Blasting Democrats for “arrogance and abuse of power,” Bowles pointed to a sometime Democratic tactic of scheduling budget votes to ensure that only a simple majority is needed for passage and linked that to a Republican laundry list of economic woes.

Bowles suggested that “this go-it-alone mentality” on the part of Democrats left Republicans to be “simply scoffed at.”

“It is time we had a majority party that will listen to the Maine people and make government work for them instead of making them work for government,” Bowles said.

House membership by party is about as close as it could be, heading into the November elections. No party has a majority as seats are held by 74 Democrats, 73 Republicans, 1 Green Independent and 3 unenrolled or independent members, along with the two nonvoting members representing the Penobscot Nation and the Passamaquoddy Tribe.

House districts have close to 8,500 residents.

Top-of-the-ticket Democrats marked the post-Labor Day phase of the 2006 campaign season on Sept. 5 by outlining broad policy positions that in a number of instances coincide with the Republican agenda highlighted Thursday.

Both sides have declared their general support for affordable health care, higher education, lower gas prices and fiscal responsibility.

Democratic legislative leaders and party chief Ben Dudley issued a rebuttal statement shortly after Thursday’s Republican news conference, which was attended by a smattering of aides and campaign workers from both sides.

“Under Democratic leadership this session, we’ve passed the most significant small business legislation of the past 25 years,” outgoing House Speaker John Richardson, D-Brunswick, said in the statement.

“We eliminated the business equipment tax; and the cost of doing business in Maine is lower than in all other New England states. Our work is far from done, but we are making real accomplishments to improve and support the small business environment here in Maine, and we will continue to build on that success,” Richardson said.

Assistant House Republican Leader Josh Tardy of Newport said the GOP campaign would flesh out its message in coming weeks.

Acknowledging the light media turnout for the Republican news conference, Tardy said organizers “understand there is a lot going on in this campaign season.”